Schwalbe Studded Tires for 650b wheels?

[Zack]

Hey all - I am reading up on studded tire choices for my wife's betty, which is 650b.  Are there schwalbe marathon winters which fit?

If there are not, any tips on studded tires for 650b bikes?

Appreciate the help in advance.

[Patrick in VT]

On Sunday, October 14, 2012 11:49:12 PM UTC-4, Zack wrote:

Hey all - I am reading up on studded tire choices for my wife's betty, which is 650b.  Are there schwalbe marathon winters which fit?

Schwalbe A10 is available in 650b, and it works just fine.

[Zack]

Do you mean Nokia A10?

On Sunday, October 14, 2012 11:49:12 PM UTC-4, Zack wrote:

[Patrick in VT]

yes.  my bad.  the Nokian A10.

[Leslie]

Nokian A10 is halfway down the page: http://www.peterwhitecycles.com/studdedtires.asp

[Zack]

so is the nokian what everyone uses on 650b bikes for studded tire?

[lungimsam]

Been reading about studded tires.

Sounds like you must swap out wheels/tires for dry days, or have a second bike with studded tires on them only for snow/ice days.

 

Reads like studs don't do well on dry pavement.

 

But I bet they are really great on ice. probably life savers.

 

Do they do the job well?

[Patrick in VT]

On Wednesday, October 17, 2012 2:26:10 AM UTC-4, lungimsam wrote:

"Sounds like you must swap out wheels/tires for dry days, or have a second bike with studded tires on them only for snow/ice days."

Studded tires are fine on dry pavement, they just ride like bricks and have a lot of rolling resistance.  but that tends to matter little in the winter slop.  if you live anywhere that has real, variable winter weather for a few months, there's no point in taking them off - it could be dry on the morning commute, but the evening commute could be a sheet of ice.  and just because the main roads are dry doesn't mean that road shoulders, secondary roads, MUPs are in good shape.  there might only be 15 yards of ice on a 5 mile commute, but the traction on those 15 yards is well worth a bit of extra rolling resistance.  it's not all that different than studded tires on a car.

As for how studs handle ice, I like Peter White's analogy of walking on ice that's been lightly sanded.  it's kind of like that.  but i rely on my experience, bike handling skills and common sense way more than my tires for winter riding. 

[Zack]

Yep, I concur with Patrick on pretty much everything he said about studded tires.

They are fine on dry pavement.  I actually also happen to live in Vermont, and, last winter, there were probably only a few days I really 'needed' the studs for the entire ride, but there are also little patches on every ride which were a tiny bit icy.  I was also really happy last spring when I took them off and put regular tires back on, the bike felt so much better.

One thing I learned quickly was I would forget that I didn't have studs on my shoes, and would put my feet down and slip (which can be painful/disastrous with a big riv between your legs lol).  But the natural consequences helped me remember not to do that after a time or two.  

[BykMor]

I wholeheartedly third what Patrick in VT and Zack just said.

I put studded tires on my cyclomuter right before the first freeze, take them off right after the last and FORGET about them in between. The key is to forget about them and not let people shame you in to thinking you're doing something silly. (This is assuming you live someplace you would consider using them.) It'd be like wondering why you rode to work in the morning with a light on your bike even though you 'expected' to ride home while it was still light.

Get decent tires with carbide tipped studs.

Don't think of them as resistance training, but just know that you'll be so strong come spring.

Cheers,

BykMor

[Marc Irwin]

I've been using them on my 650b city bike for a couple of years. I think they are great for city streets that are plowed regularly.

Marc